American Express repeats as the most trusted company for privacy, according to the seventh annual Most Trusted Companies for Privacy Study. Ponemon Institute released the study in recognition of Data Privacy Day. This annual study tracks consumers rankings of organizations that collect and manage their personal information.

More than 100,000 adult-aged consumers were asked to name up to five companies they believe to be the most trusted for protecting the privacy of their personal information. Consumer responses were gathered over a 15-week period concluding in December 2012 and resulted in a final sample of 6,704 respondents who, on average, provided 5.4 discernible company ratings that represent 25 different industries.

The top 20 companies and how they ranked in 2012 and 2011 is presented in the table below. A description of the survey methodology is presented in the full report available at http://www.ponemon.org.